Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Every year, Don Barrett has
taken a poll of subscribers and visitors of his radio “watercooler,” LARadio.Com. The results
have been trickling out over the past week or so, and as it turns out, they are
a list of the heavy-hitters in Los Angeles radio. Barrett says that over 200
people participated in the poll this year.

Heavy hitters, yes. But did
you notice something interesting? If you go by this list, AM radio is on par
with FM in popularity, and talk and sports dominated. Obviously there is a
little skewing going on.

And of course, there is.
The responses came from readers and subscribers of LARadio.Com, a website that tends to attract radio
fans (fanatics?), probably (read: definitely) skews older than the average radio
listener and in general attracts people like me. Would my votes be the same as
the results? In some cases yes, but for the most part, interestingly, no. But
that is because of my aversion to political talk radio.

Yet without exception (or
perhaps more accurately with few exceptions), I respect and admire every
broadcaster on the list. And it does make you realize that radio is still a
powerful medium that reaches the hearts and minds of listeners. As we celebrate
Thanksgiving this week and spend time with our families, I, for one, am thankful
that I can still hear my “radio family” on the air. No other medium is so
intimate, so personal.

Happy thanksgiving, and I
hope you enjoy the start of the holiday season.